Item 185 - Letter from Lord Pethick-Lawrence to Lady Pethick-Lawrence

1 single sheet

Office of Cabinet Delegation, The Viceroy’s House, New Delhi.—The mission’s statement has been published. Discusses the likely date of his return home. Has discussed his theory of the equilibrium of good and evil with an Indian Christian.

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Transcript

Office of Cabinet Delegation, The Viceroy’s House, New Delhi
June 17. 46

Dearest

With publication of our statement of yesterday the political barometer has risen somewhat but at any moment may go down again.

If, mirabile dictu, we were to get unqualified agreement by both parties we might be wending our way home by the time this letter reaches you & if so you will have been already told by the I B O. If you have not so heard you must take it either tht they are still haggling about it or tht one or other of the parties has turned either the long term or the short term scheme definitely down.

I hope tht in any case we may not have to stay here many days longer. But if necessary we may have to do so.

Poor Albert (Alexander), who incidentally has been slightly indisposed, especially wanted to be back on 23rd but his chance of doing so seems rather slender at the moment if he is to stay here to see the job through.
It is getting damp & sticky & the monsoon may break before we leave. The swimming pool is full of hot water & it is not easy to swim in it.

I went for a walk with Amrit Kaur this morning before breakfast. She talked shop most of the time but said at the end tht she didn’t see why I should not be able to get off home quite soon—which seemed to me encouraging both on public & private grounds.

I was pleased to know tht you seem to have entered on a period of better weather.

I met an Indian yesterday & talked to him about my idea of the equilibrium of good & evil. He said he had not heard it put like tht before. But he said he was a Christian. {1}

Dear love & kisses to my darling
Boy.

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The abbreviation ‘tht’ for ‘that’ occurs a few times.

{1} This paragraph is written in the left-hand margin; the succeeding words are in the right. It is unclear which was written first.

This description was created by A. C. Green in 2020.